A Modern Entertainer

As a child, Lisa Dengler spent her summers in Germany, at the side of her beloved oma, watching as her grandmother transformed fresh ingredients from the garden into mouth-watering meals. As she got older—moving first to Toronto, where she was raised and schooled, followed by New York where her passion for photography and coding transformed her into a social-media darling, and then, most recently, to her new digs in L.A. —Dengler began collecting her oma’s recipes and making them for herself. This, in turn, ignited a love of cooking and entertaining that, on a particular September Sunday eve, has become the raison d'être for celebrating TV’s most exciting night. “I love bringing people together,” Dengler says “I’ve always loved the conversation that happens around good food, a beautiful home, and an interesting mix of people.” With her secret weapons at the ready—an enthusiastic group of friend-sous chefs and cutting-edge creative kitchen tools from the Dacor Modernist Collection—Dengler clinches the award for Best Modern Entertainer.

Lisa prepares Manhattan cocktails for her guests using the Dual Icemaker Cocktail Ice™.

EMARI TRAFFIE

The Prep

Preparedness is paramount when it comes to pulling off a successful at-home soiree. To begin, you first need to home in on the magic number—of guests, that is. “My feeling is the more the merrier,” she says. “Based on the approximate number of guests, you can start dreaming up a menu, and then based on how much you want to impress those guests, you can make the meal easier or more complex.” Extra guests also mean extra hands in the kitchen, which Dengler says gives her gatherings a laid-back, collaborative vibe. But Dengler’s no. 1 rule when it comes to at-home entertaining? “Be prepared by always assuming you’ll need more than you have, and be observant. Pay attention to what your guests like to eat and drink and do, so you can keep that mojo going.”

The Menu

Dengler moved around so much as a child and has continued to explore the world as much as possible as an adult that the concept of “home” doesn’t ground her in one place for very long. Which is most likely why her food philosophy is so evolved: Eschewing a short-list of standbys, she likes to challenge herself with new dishes when guests come over. Case in point: her awards-show-soiree menu featuring mussels and red snapper. “Mussels are so fun to eat. They’re essentially more classy finger food, which I think is great,” she says. For her signature mussels, she pours a round of drinks (see The Cocktails) and has her friends get their hands dirty cleaning and “de-bearding” the mussels. While they are hard at work, she sweats a trio of aromatics (shallots, leeks, and garlic) with a bay leaf in some butter in a large saucepan over moderate heat. She adds a good pour of dry hard cider and brings it to a boil; after dropping in the mussels, she covers the lid and appoints one of her pals to check the pot every so often to watch the little beauties open. As for the main course, she likes red snapper because it’s simple, healthy, and delicious. Dengler recommends steaming the fish with a combination of aromatics like ginger, scallion, garlic, and sesame oil or parsley, salted capers, garlic, and crushed red pepper—which can be prepped in advance or chopped, sliced, and diced when all guests’ hands are on deck—in heavy-duty foil in a 425-degree oven for 30 minutes.

Lisa removes a dish of mussels from her Double Wall Oven having used the Steam Bake mode to cook them.

Emari Traffie

The Tools

Dengler chose wisely when she nominated her best supporting chef for the evening: the Modernist line of innovative appliances

from Dacor. “I am obsessed with the Pro Dual-Fuel Steam Range. I used its Real Steam™ technology to prepare the red snapper—and perfectly, I might add.” She also tapped into the Double Wall Oven’s patented Steam Bake mode to give her moules that ideal buttery brine that goes so well with a loaf of fresh French bread. A symphony of cooking style and substance, the Modernist appliances boast intelligent touch-screen displays and spacious capacities that made moving through the evening with the greatest of ease for the hostess. “All the pieces are both beautiful and functional—what more could you ever want?”

The Cocktails

Dengler admits to typically being a gin-and-tonic girl, but lately, “I’ve developed a love for cocktails. I’m not quite sure how I’m ever going to live without the Dacor Modernist Panel-Ready Column refrigerator and freezer with Cocktail Ice™—it makes the perfect ice cubes for cocktails.” On this evening’s bar menu: the iconic Manhattan, one of the oldest cocktails in existence and made popular by some of Hollywood’s most legendary stars (on and off the screen). Combine two ounces of whiskey, one ounce of sweet vermouth, and two dashes of bitters in a cocktail shaker with ice. Dengler dispatches a pal to rub the rims of each chilled glass with a twist of orange before doling out and garnishing her drinks with two maraschino cherries each. Cheers!

The Ambience

When Dengler entertains at home, she knows the devil is in the details. Her secret hostess advice: Cue up separate playlists for separate rooms. “I play different music in the bathroom than I do in the dining room. It makes everything feel more intentional and planned.” She also forgoes a formal seated affair with serving food in a buffet so guests can mix, mingle, and munch at their leisure without missing a beat—or an acceptance speech. “I prefer serving family style at the table. It’s much more interactive and fun.” Lastly, she streamlines her style so she can focus on what’s important: feeding her friends. “I keep it simple because you never know what you could spill. Just a black T-shirt and black jeans. Then when the food is nearly ready, I’ll slip into something more playful but it depends on my mood or theme of the party!” For an awards-show viewing party, her aesthetic includes statuette-worthy silk shirts, suede skirts, and structured pantsuits.

The Ballot

This TV binge-watcher is not ashamed to stand up and cheer on her favorite series, which this awards-show night, include one involving a trio of offbeat kids and another an alternate true-west landscape. “I’m drawn to shows that depict a reality similar to ours but go further into the unknown; I find them incredibly intriguing,” she says. “But mostly I’m excited to see what everyone is wearing.” As far as getting her guests in on the fun, she looks to Pinterest to help her create interactive ballots—and then asks everyone invited to bring a fun gift valued at or below a certain price. “I ask everyone to bring their favorite item to receive. Then the winner gets to take everything home!”

Lisa is reviewing her awards ballot as she scoops Cocktail Ice™ into a glass before making cocktails for her guests.

Emari Traffie

To experience how the innovative technology and thoughtful design of the Dacor Modernist Collection turns every meal into a masterpiece, visit dacor.com.